The Florentine Dagger (1935)

Juan Cesare, a descendant of the Borgia's of Vienna, thinks he may have a murder streak in him acquired from his long-dead relatives, is is love with Florence Ballau, but her father lodges ... See full summary »

Director:

Robert Florey

Writers:

Ben Hecht (by), Tom Reed (screen play),

Stars:

Donald Woods, Margaret Lindsay, C. Aubrey Smith

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Donald Woods	...	Cesare
Margaret Lindsay	...	Florence
C. Aubrey Smith	...	Dr. Lytton
Henry O'Neill	...	Victor Ballau
Robert Barrat	...	The Captain
Florence Fair	...	Teresa - Ballau's Housekeeper
Frank Reicher	...	Von Stein - Stage Manager
Charles Judels	...	Salvatore - Hotel Proprietor
Rafaela Ottiano	...	Lili Salvatore
Paul Porcasi	...	Antonio - Italian Policeman
Eily Malyon	...	Fredericka - Mask Maker
Egon Brecher	...	Karl - Lytton's Butler
Herman Bing	...	Baker
Henry Kolker	...	Auctioneer
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Walter Bonn	...	Bartender (scenes deleted)

Storyline

Juan Cesare, a descendant of the Borgia's of Vienna, thinks he may have a murder streak in him acquired from his long-dead relatives, is is love with Florence Ballau, but her father lodges a strong protest. Papa Ballau is later found dead with a Florentine dagger of the Borgia type stuck firmly in him. Juan is all wrought up and tortured by thoughts he may have been the killer. But there is also a disfigured housekeeper on the premises who may or may not have had a motive.

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Plot Keywords:

borgia | dagger | housekeeper | murder | mask | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

30 March 1935 (USA)

Also Known As:

O Punhal dos Borgias

Filming Locations:

Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros, Vitaphone Corporation, The

Technical Specs

Runtime:

69 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Two cast members in studio records/casting call lists did not appear or were not identifiable in the movie. These were (with their character names): William Jeffrey (Editor) and Walter Bonn (Bartender).

User Reviews

Better-than-average hour-long programmer

This 65-minute mystery was part of the Warner Brothers' "Clue Club" series of programmers. Most of these short thrillers are truly unwatchable melanges of slapstick and skullduggery. The Florentine Dagger is a little better, and does keep one's interest with the foggy Viennese (as opposed to foggy London) locations, production values that aren't bottom-of-the-barrel, and a story that involves a descendant of the Borgias. C. Aubrey Smith lends a real whiff of greasepaint to the proceedings. Don't waste your life waiting for this one to roll around, but, if you catch it, you may find it a tolerable way to pass an hour.